Stay with me?
by HalfwaytoNowhere142
Summary: COMPLETE: One-shot Hermione and Ginny.


She's so perfectly beautiful... but also completely oblivious. How someone so damn smart be so blind?

Ginny sighs from her viewpoint on her bed in the room she now shares with Hermione at Hogwarts, where she hopes it looks like she's reading _Quidditch Through the Ages_, and watches Hermione combing her hair. What she wouldn't give to touch her... to feel her soft body rub against Ginny's own. _No! Stop! She's your friend, you idiot! You can't think this way!_

"Ginny? Can you come help me please? I can't get this snarl out." Ginny numbly gets up and ignores her increased heart rate. She grabs the brush from Hermione, their fingers gently brushing as she does so. She ignores the shock of the soft, limber fingers against her own and concentrates on getting out the tangle.

She finishes quickly and, before she knows what she's doing, she runs her fingers through Hermione's soft, silky hair, loving the feeling. She gasps when she realizes what she's doing and looks up to see Hermione watching her curiously.

_Shit. She knows._

Hermione smiles and says thanks without another word.

_Maybe she doesn't know. _Ginny chances a peak at Hermione, who smiles at her again.

_Of course, she knows._

_No, that's ridiculous. How could she know? I've been so careful around her._

_Because you're bloody in love with her, that's how! Of course, she's noticed you staring at her!_

Ginny rubs her head; she feels a headache coming on. _Shut up you lot! _Great. Now she's talking to voices in her head. And she thought Percy was the crazy one in the family.

She closes her eyes to a-void watching Hermione get into bed and pretends to be sleeping when Hermione glances her way before turning out the light with her wand.

Tomorrow is the first day of the new semester at Hogwarts and the girls are, as usual, sharing a room this year, with a few others. She just hopes that she can make it being Hermione's roommate without jumping her or something.

* * *

As soon as her first day of classes is over, Ginny heads for the Quidditch pitch. Quidditch is her drug. It's her passion. It helps her forget about the world as the wind swirls around her in mass confusion. Up here, in the air, the trivialities of daily life don't matter. She doesn't have to constrain to the social norm or pretend that everything in her life is all right. Up here, only Ginny and the elements exist, and only one of them can win this battle known to humans since the beginning of time: a battle of survival.

Most importantly, though, this fight lets her forget Hermione.

This is one of the few times in the day when she knows for sure that thoughts of Hermione won't pop into her head randomly. This is the one time in the day when she feels like she could actually be happy without Hermione, although she knows that her life seems so much better with Hermione around.

Hermione makes her happy and brings out the best in her. She just wants to be around her, even if they don't talk about anything significant. Hermione _gets _Ginny. It's funny how Ginny can live at the Burrow for a month or two without anyone in her family realizing that something is bothering her because she just hides it that well, but as soon as Hermione sees her... she knows in one conversation.

That's how it's always been with Hermione and Ginny is terrified to risk losing that by telling Hermione the truth: Ginny Weasely is madly in love with her.

* * *

"Hey Hermione! Ready for Transfiguration?" She jogs to catch up to Hermione the next morning after breakfast in the Great Hall.

"Um. Hi Ginny. What do you mean?" Hermione's struggling with her mountain-load of books (who knows how many classes she's taking this year), so Ginny grabs a few.

"I skipped a year. Professor McGonnegell said that I'm good enough to take class with you guys." She can't help but smirk at the surprised look on Hermione's face.

Hermione nudges her elbow into Ginny's side. "Hmmm... Ginny Weasely is smart? Who knew?"

"Haha. Very funny."

"I was just kidding, Gin."

They stride into the room, laughing and teasing each other, and Ginny wishes frantically in her heart that this moment could last forever.

* * *

She's bloody crying and she hates herself for feeling so damn weak. Ginny Weasley isn't freaking weak. She's strong, independent, and smart. That's who she is. Not this blubbering mess she is currently impersonating.

"Ginny? Are you okay?" Shit. Hermione's awake and she's heard Ginny crying. Could this get any more embarrassing?

"I'm fine, Hermione. Go back to bed."

The bedsprings squeak as Hermione gets up and Ginny feels the weight of the bed shift as Hermione sits down next to Ginny. "Nice try. What's wrong?"

"It's just a cold."

"C'mon, Gin. Tell me the truth."

She only shrugs, at a loss for words to describe why she's feeling this way, and she's so overcome with emotion that she is shocked slightly when a pair of soft, warm arms wrap her up. She immediately feels safe as she turns her head into Hermione's chest and starts bawling for reasons that frankly, she doesn't want anyone to know about.

She finally gets the words out in barely a whisper, "Please don't leave me."

Hermione tightens her gentle hold. "I'm not going anywhere."

"Not yet. But, I know you and Harry and Ron are planning something so that you can defeat You-Know-Who. And I know you won't let me come along because I've argued this with Harry a _thousand_ times. So, if I can't come to look after you... I just don't want to lose you, Hermione." She snuggles into Hermione's warm body.

"Just me? What about Harry and Ron?"

"W-well, I'll miss them too of course." She feels Hermione stiffen.

"But not as much." Hermione finishes the sentence for her and Ginny is too emotionally exhausted, and physically tired to deny or cover up her true feelings this time around, so she remains quiet.

Hermione doesn't know what to say. This is her moment. This is her _chance, _but she knows that now is not the time. She needs to tell Ginny about her feelings when she's sure that Ginny's not emotionally vulnerable. She wants to be sure that Ginny feels the same for her and that Hermione's not just taking advantage of a weak moment.

"Stay here with me?" Ginny sounds so hesitant, as if she's afraid that Hermione will reject her, that Hermione gathers Ginny more firmly in her arms and guides her to lay back down on the bed.

Ginny snuggles close with a sigh of contentment and it isn't long before her sniffles stop and she drifts into a heavy sleep.

Hermione smiles, knowing that tomorrow she will tell Ginny the truth: she loves Ginny. She will ask her to be her girlfriend.

Hermione waits until she's sure Ginny's asleep before she whispers her answer, "Always."


End file.
